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As trained clinicians, we would all say that we are fairly good at communication. When we do a medicines use review or talk to a patient about their new medicine, we know that because of the efforts we take to explain things, people are happy with the information they have received and leave with better knowledge than they had before.

Evidence suggests, however, that we don’t always get it right. Our consultation skills can lack the necessary patient-centred approach.

In its Consultation Skills learning modules1, CPPE highlights research from general practice, showing that rushed consultations result in only half of patients’ concerns being identified, variable levels of patient satisfaction with the consultations and, ultimately, only half of patients adhere to the treatment and advice they are given in a consultation.

The NHS is committed to putting patients at the centre of their own healthcare, and outlines this in the NHS Constitution and in the Equity And Excellence: Liberating The NHS government white paper.2 It aims to ensure that patients are true partners in discussions about their care, to help them to make informed choices and to be fully involved in the decisionmaking process for their own health.

Pharmacy needs to embrace this principle if it is to be fully integrated into the NHS and make a key contribution to medicines optimisation.

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